He stopped all immunosuppressive drugs, including cortisone, in a kidney-transplant patient six years after the transplant; after six weeks the transplanted kidney worked more efficiently with a better GFR (presented as a success of the Tayebat system).

Original statement

هي كلمه واحده انا هقولها معايا حاله زرع ك بطلت لها ادويه مثبطات المناعه بتاعتها الكورتيزون بعد ست سنين من الزرع بتاعها والحمد لله بعد شهر ونص الكليه المزروعه بتعمل بكفاءه اكتر الكليات من احسن والجي اف ار احسن بفضل الله

verbatim according to source. Translation by the project; the Arabic wording is authoritative.

Translation

He stopped all immunosuppressive drugs, including cortisone, in a kidney-transplant patient six years after the transplant; after six weeks the transplanted kidney worked more efficiently with a better GFR (presented as a success of the Tayebat system).

Origin

Source status

Video transcript (own words)

Attribution

Elawady (machine transcript)

Video

Dr.D Clinics - Diaa Al Awady is live! الام الذبحة و التهاب الأعصاب الطرفية (Open source)

Published

18 February 2025

Timestamp

0:18:45 (location in the original video’s automatic YouTube caption track; confirms where the words occur, not who speaks)

Attribution uncertainty

Transcript is YouTube CC or machine-generated (no timestamps); wording may contain speech-recognition errors. Speaker attribution within live streams/podcasts is not marked in the transcript; the excerpt was judged to be Elawady's own speech from context. Recurrence = number of archive transcripts matching the keyword pattern ['زرع|زرعه|المزروعه', 'مثبطات|بروجراف|ماي فورتك|ادويه المناعه|دوا الزرع'] (approximate; includes re-uploads/clips; 11 distinct text passages).

Claimed mechanism

Not stated in this excerpt.

Claimed health effect

Improved function of a transplanted kidney after stopping immunosuppression.

Population concerned

Kidney-transplant recipients.

Geographic restriction by Elawady

none found; he does not limit this statement to a country or to a production system

Diverging source versions

Scientific assessment

False – The statement contradicts the robust evidence.

Certainty of evidence: moderate – Further research may still affect the assessment.

1. What was claimed?

He reports that he stopped all immunosuppressants and cortisone in a kidney-transplant recipient six years after transplantation and that six weeks later the graft worked better.

2. What is demonstrably correct?

Corticosteroids can be withdrawn in selected recipients when other immunosuppressants continue: in a blinded RCT, early steroid withdrawal with continued tacrolimus and MMF gave similar 5-year graft survival and function and better metabolic outcomes, though with more mild acute rejection (17.8% vs 10.8%) (I-INTB-10). He also said himself that he did not know what would happen.

3. What is wrong or exaggerated?

Presenting this case as a success is not justified. Not taking immunosuppressants is common and is associated with about seven times higher odds of graft failure; a median 36% of graft losses followed prior nonadherence (I-INTB-09). Rejection can develop months after stopping drugs, so six weeks says little. A short-term rise in GFR after stopping calcineurin inhibitors (tacrolimus, ciclosporin) can occur because these drugs constrict kidney vessels (general pharmacology, not separately sourced), so a better GFR does not prove the graft is safe. Immunosuppression and graft monitoring are part of standard transplant care (I-INTB-11).

4. What remains unclear?

What happened to this patient later is unknown.

5. Which studies support it?

I-INTB-10 (only for steroid withdrawal with continued immunosuppression).

6. Which studies contradict it?

I-INTB-09, I-INTB-11.

7. What applies to Germany and Europe?

Transplant centres in Europe follow KDIGO-type guidance; changes in immunosuppression are made by the transplant team.

8. What is known about Egypt?

The same applies in Egypt; graft loss means a return to dialysis.

9. What practical conclusion is appropriate?

Never stop transplant medicines without the transplant team. Steroid reduction is sometimes possible, but only under specialist supervision with monitoring.

Assessment details

Rationale for certainty of evidence

The single case cannot be verified and six weeks is far too short to judge graft survival. Systematic review evidence shows that not taking immunosuppressants raises the odds of graft failure about sevenfold (I-INTB-09). Complete withdrawal has not been tested in randomised trials (it would be unethical), so certainty is moderate rather than high.

Source quality

Machine transcript of a live stream; wording may contain recognition errors; meaning checked in context. Anecdote; no medical records shown.

Regional transferability

Universal transplant immunology.

Individual exceptions

A small minority of recipients may become tolerant of the graft (general transplant knowledge, not sourced here); this cannot be predicted without specialist testing.

Regional scope of the claim

general (biological/medical)

Last reviewed

25 October 2026 provisional

In plain language

Dr. Elawady described one kidney-transplant patient whose anti-rejection drugs he stopped, saying the kidney worked better six weeks later. One case cannot be checked and six weeks is far too short. Studies show that people who do not take their anti-rejection drugs are much more likely to lose the new kidney. Doctors can sometimes stop cortisone, but only while other anti-rejection drugs continue. Stopping everything is risky.

Studies on this claim

Regional context

Germany / EU

Transplant centres in Europe follow KDIGO-type guidance; changes in immunosuppression are made by the transplant team.

Egypt

The same applies in Egypt; graft loss means a return to dialysis.

What applies in my country?

General scientific assessment

False Stopping all immunosuppression after a kidney transplant risks losing the graft; one short-term case does not show otherwise.

This statement concerns biological or medical relationships. The scientific assessment above applies regardless of the country; country-specific food data do not change it.

References

1. Frequency and impact of nonadherence to immunosuppressants after renal transplantation: a systematic review.. Butler JA et al.. Transplantation 2004 · PMID 15021846 · DOI 10.1097/01.tp.0000110408.83054.88
2. KDIGO clinical practice guideline for the care of kidney transplant recipients.. KDIGO Transplant Work Group. Am J Transplant 2009 · PMID 19845597 · DOI 10.1111/j.1600-6143.2009.02834.x
3. A prospective, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled multicenter trial comparing early (7 day) corticosteroid cessation versus long-term, low-dose corticosteroid therapy.. Woodle ES et al.. Ann Surg 2008 · PMID 18936569 · DOI 10.1097/SLA.0b013e318187d1da